Re-wiring outlet on switch

I have an outlet on a switch that I find inconvenient because my TV and cable box plugs into it. My wife always hits the switch on accident (it's 1 of 5 in a 5-gang box). Whenever the the switch gets hit, the cable box can take up to an hour to fully reset.

I thought about making the outlet a 2-gang box and simply add a new outlet next to the switched one to have a solid plug.

I'm having a pretty big problem. I should have tested the switch prior to taking everything apart - (I know it worked at least a few weeks ago though)..

When the two blacks are connected it sends power to the 5 switches. When I disconnect the blacks the switches go dark - so I know which wire is my feed.

Now get this - when the blacks are tied together the red instantly gets hot within the same romex - on both ends. I know I have the right wire because when I disconnect the nut it all goes dark. What the heck is going on?

The only thing I thought of that changed was I hung the TV on the wall. I took down the bracket and cut a few holes to look inside to see if I hit a wire with the lags, but I couldn't see anything - the studs I lagged into looked clear.

I'm having a pretty big problem. I should have tested the switch prior to taking everything apart - (I know it worked at least a few weeks ago though)..

When the two blacks are connected it sends power to the 5 switches. When I disconnect the blacks the switches go dark - so I know which wire is my feed.

Now get this - when the blacks are tied together the red instantly gets hot within the same romex - on both ends. I know I have the right wire because when I disconnect the nut it all goes dark. What the heck is going on?

The only thing I thought of that changed was I hung the TV on the wall. I took down the bracket and cut a few holes to look inside to see if I hit a wire with the lags, but I couldn't see anything - the studs I lagged into looked clear.

What are you testing for power with? If you're using a non-contact voltage detector, it's pretty common for them to falsely indicate power on a disconnected wire within the same cable as a hot wire. Check with a voltmeter.

I'm using a fluke pen - but when I connected it back the way I found it the outlet is always hot regardless of the switch. The Red and Black both have power.

In the below diagram - when the yellow nut is disconnected the 14-3 has no power. When it is connected, both red and black have power. This is with the red wire disconnected on both ends - outlet and switch.

I guess the switch had both ends hot on it. I'm not sure how that didn't cause a problem though?

I clipped the metal piece connecting the hots together, added the extra jumper put everything back together and when I tested the outlet with the fluke stick it said both sides were hot even with the switch off.

I then took everything back apart again and nothing looked out of the ordinary. I took apart the switch and again nothing odd either.

I turned the power on with the red disconnected on both ends and it read hot again. At that point knowing that it's a straight run the only thing I could think of that changed recently was mounting the TV.

I thought maybe I clipped the wire on the stud while lagging it in. I removed 3 sections of drywall (2-3" squares each) and the wire wasn't on the stud I went into.

I then re-read here and decided to plug a lamp into the socket and bingo - everything works like expected.

That test stick caused me a few hours of unnecessary investigation and frustration - UGHH.

And now I have to patch the drywall holes I created - I hate drywall work. They are mostly covered by the TV but the one I can see from the end.